Adjustable measuring cup



May 9, 1939. c. s. JANSEN ADJUSTABLE MEASURING CUP Filed Aug. 7, 1937fly- 2.

IN VEN TOR. flew/M. J. Jansen.

A TTOR EY.

Patented May 9, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 8 Claims.

This invention relates in general to measuring receptacles, and is moreparticularly concerned with the provision of an improved form ofadjustable measuring cup suitable for household 5 culinary purposes.

It is one of the principal objects of the invention to provide ameasuring cup of simple and. inexpensive construction which is readilyand quickly adjustable to vary the capacity of the cup.

10 Another object is to provide such a cup which is well suited for usein measuring such semisolid or plastic materials as lard, butter and thelike, as well as for measuring both liquid and dry materials such ascooking oils, syrups, sugar,

15 flour, etc. i

A further object is toprovide an adjustable measuring cupwhich is easilyand conveniently used, and in which the parts are readily accessible forcleaning.

20 These and other objects, as well as additional advantages inherent inthe invention, will best be understood and appreciated by reference tothe following description of an illustrative embodiment taken inconnection with the accompanying drawing thereof, wherein:

Fig. 1 is a cross section of a measuring cup embodying the invention, asviewed along the line l! of Fig.2;

Fig 2 is a plan view of the cup, a portion being .80 broken away tobetter illustrate certain details of construction.

In the illustrative embodiment, the cup is made up of a cylindrical openended cup body I fitted over a plunger 2 which forms the bottom of the.15 cup, these parts having a relatively close sliding plunger 2 ispreferably provided wtih a depending annular flange 3 serving both as aseal and also to provide an elongated bearing surface whereby tofacilitate rigidity of the parts and promote ease of operation byminimizing any 45 tendency toward binding between the plunger and cupbody.

The plunger is also advantageously provided with a supporting standard 4which may be of tubular form as illustrated, and provided at its lowerend with a base or pedestal 5 serving to support the cup in uprightposition and also as a convenient hand hold in manipulating the cup. Thestandard 4 may be secured to the plunger 2 5 by any suitable means as,for example, the screw 6, and the pedestal 5 may be pressed onto thestandard or otherwise firmly secured thereto.

A latch arm or lever 1 projects downwardly from beneath the plunger 2where it is pivotally secured at its upper end by means of a pivot g5pin 8 passing through ears 9 formed on the upper end of the standard 4.A flat spring Ill secured to the standard 4 as by a screw II bearsagainst the latch arm 7 and serves to yieldingly urge the latch armoutwardly into engagement with the 10 cup body I. The lower end of thelatch arm 1 may be provided with a laterally projecting curved extensionI2 passing through slots [3 in the standard l which. serve as guidestherefor.

The outer edge of the latch arm 7 is provided with a series of steps Mat predetermined points forming stops for engagement by the lower edgeof the cup body i to enable the cup body and plunger to be set in any ofa plurality of predetermined positions of adjustment according to whichof the steps is engaged with the cup body. The latch arm is providedwith suitable indicia adjacent the steps, as shown, to indicate thecapacity of the cup when the cup body engages With the correspondingstep. In the particular embodiment illustrated, the steps l2 arearranged and marked for setting the cup to positions of 1, A,, 7 and ofa standard cup measure, and the lowermost step is provided to enablesetting the cup body and plunger with the face of the plunger exactlyflush with the upper rim of the cup body in which setting the cup willobviously have zero capacity. It will be understood that other settingsmight be provided for, if desired, by properly forming the steps l2, aswill be apparent.

When the user desires to adjust the cup to reduce its capacity, thelatch arm 1 may be depressed against the action of the spring Ill bypressing against the heel l5 of the latch arm so as to disengage it fromthe cup body, thereby freeing the cup body for sliding movementdownwardly over the plunger 2, and the cup may then be reset byreleasing the latch arm and pressing the cup body into engagement withwhichever step is selected for the capacity desired.

When it is desired to increase the capacity of the cup it is onlynecessary to pull the cup body upwardly away from the plunger until itslower edge passes over the step corresponding to the desired capacity,the spring it] automatically snapping the step into place beneath theedge of the cup body, and the latter is then pressed backward againstthe step whereupon the cup is accurately set for the capacitycorresponding to that step.

It will be apparent from the foregoing that the measuring cup embodyingmy invention is quickly and easily adjusted to accurately vary thecapacity of the cup. It will also be observed that the cup is not onlyuseful for measuring liquids and dry materials, but is also especiallysuited for measuring such plastic materials as lard, butter and thelike. Such materials may either be packed into the cup, or the cup maybe thrust open end first into the material to fill it, and the chargethen levelled off with the rim of the cup by means of a knife or otherstraight edge. The entire charge of material may then be ejected fromthe cup by adjusting the cup body and plunger as above described so thatthe plunger is brought flush with the upper rim of the cup body. Thecharge of material is thus quickly and cleanly discharged from the cup.

It is also to be observed that the cup body and plunger are entirelyindependent of each other so that they may quickly and easily beseparated from each other for cleaning purposes and as readily fittedback together again.

It will be understood that while I have illustrated but a singleembodiment of my invention, various modifications and alterations may bemade in the design, proportions, and construction of the same withoutdeparting from the scope and spirit of the invention, and I deem myselfentitled to all such modifications and alterations as fall within thescope of the appended claims.

Having now described my invention and in what manner the same may beused, what I claim as new and desire to protect by Letters Patent is:

1. An adjustable measuring cup comprising a cup body having an axiallyadjustable bottom therein, and a movable latch arm operativelyassociated with said bottom and having its. upper end pivotally securedtherebeneath, said arm being provided with a series of stops forselective engagement with the cup body to enable setting of the latterand its bottom in any of a plurality of predetermined positions ofadjustment.

2. An adjustable. measuring cup comprising an open ended cup body havingan axially adjustable bottom therein, and a movable arm mounted beneathand operatively associated with said bottom, said arm being providedwith a series of steps for selective engagement with the lower rim ofthe cup body to enable setting of the latter and its bottom in any of aplurality of. pre determined positions of adjustment while leaving thecup body free for withdrawal from the bottom away from said stepswithout disengagement of the latch from said rim.

3. An adjustable measuring cup comprising a cup body having an axiallyadjustable bottom therein, said cup body and bottom being freelywithdrawable from each other to separate the same and a resilientlyurged latch arm mounted beneath and operatively associated with saidbottom for engagement with the lower rim of said cup body, said latcharm being provided with a series of steps on its surface forming stopsfor selective engagement with said rim to enable setting of the latterand its bottom in. any of a plurality of predetermined positions ofadjustment while leaving the cup body free for withdrawal from thebottom away from said steps without disengagement of the latch from saidrim.

4. An adjustable measuring cup comprising a cup body having an axiallyadjustable bottom therein, said cup body and bottom being freelywithdrawable from each other to separate the same, and a latch armmounted beneath and operatively associated with said bottom, said latcharm being provided with a series of steps on its surface for selectiveengagement with the cup body to enable setting of the latter and itsbottom in any of a plurality of selected positions of adjustment whileleaving the cup body free for withdrawal from the bottom away from saidsteps without disengagement of the latch from said cup bottom.

5. An adjustable measuring cup comprising a cup body having an axiallyadjustable bottom therein, a pivoted latch arm mounted beneath andoperatively associated with said bottom for cooperation with said cupbody to enable setting of, the latter and its bottom in any of aplurality of predetermined positions of adjustment, said latch armhaving a lateral projection. thereon, and a standard depending from saidbottom and provided with a slot for the reception of said lateralprojection to guide said latch arm.

6. An adjustable measuring cup comprising a cup body having an axiallyadjustable bottom. therein, said bottom having an unobstructed planeface across which a straight edge may be freely passed to scrape itclear of adhering material, and a movable latch arm mounted beneath andoperatively associated with said bottom, said arm being provided with aseries of stops for selective engagement with the cup body to enablesetting of the latter and its bottom in any of a plurality ofpredetermined positions of adjustment.

7. An adjustable measuring cup comprising a cup body having an axiallyadjustable bottom therein, a supporting pedestal depending centrallyfrom said bottom for supporting the cup in upright position, and aresiliently urged latch arm mounted beneath and operatively associatedwith said bottom to normally engage said cup body and to be yieldinglydisengageable therefrom, said latch arm being provided with a series ofstops for selective engagement with the cup body to enable setting ofthe latter and its bottom in any of a plurality of predeterminedpositions of adjustment.

8. An adjustable measuring cup comprising a cup body having an axiallyadjustable bottom therein, said cup body being freely withdrawableforwardly from said bottom to separate the same, a supporting pedestaldepending centrally from said bottom for supporting the cup in uprightposition, a resiliently urged latch arm mounted beneath and operativelyassociated with said bottom, said latch arm being provided with a seriesof steps for selective engagement with the cup body to enable setting ofthe latter and its bottom in any of a plurality of selected positions ofadjustment while leaving the cup body free for withdrawal forwardly fromsaid bottom away from said steps.

CECELIA S. JANSEN.

